Veterinary technicians are the nuts and bolts of any veterinary practice.
When their talents and skills are utilized at an optimum level, it can make the difference between a functioning practice to an highly efficient, well-oiled machine.
Your job as a veterinary technician is to keep your patients alive, well cared for, and as comfortable as possible.
In a technician’s mind, the care of patient is the most important thing from the start of the day to the end and beyond. Many times you will have that certain patient on your mind long after your workday is done. Many technicians routinely call in on their days off to check on that special patient.
You need to be selfless.
You are guaranteed to at some point, and sometimes several times a day, to get scratched, urinated on, defecated on (with or without the bonus scent of anal glands), drooled on, vomited on, and so forth. All of this is endured for the betterment of your patients and you should treat them as if they were your own. This comes with the territory and is just a fact of life in veterinary medicine. Besides you can gross out your family and friends with all of the stomach turning details!
Sometimes it’s the little things that can really make a patient’s experience at the hospital a good one.
Think outside of the box. Try to think of the patient’s probable needs before they are admitted to the hospital if time avails. If your patient is arthritic, has had recent orthopedic surgery, is vestibular, or painful, (especially abdominal pain), try to put a good amount of cushiony material in their cage to ease some of their discomfort. Take note if the patient has a history of eating towels/fabric, etc, as you may need to figure something else out. Is your patient animal aggressive, contagious, scared to death of dogs, sound or light sensitive? Try to make the appropriate cage choice if space allows. Thinking ahead will make your nursing care easier and your patient more calm and relaxed.
Happy doctors=happy technicians=happy patients.
Support your doctors! This is very important. It is also your job to help your doctors as much as you can. You are there to make their day flow efficiently, as well. The patient’s care is just as important to the doctors as it is to you. Hopefully you are in a practice in which the doctors really value your input and opinion, if so, ask questions and give suggestions when it is appropriate. You will always be in the position to learn something new.
